Pokemon: Bounty Hunter Alex

Upon arriving inside the glass dome of the Prism Tower, Alex was unceremoniously sprayed with a heavy disinfectant in the form of a white mist. Before he could even recover his senses, a trapdoor opened beneath him and dropped him through. He tumbled down without any grace or dignity, sliding and rolling through a tube that began with a steep descent before gradually leveling out, slowing him down until he finally came to rest on his stomach, his senses at last returning in full.

"Mr. Wattson, your belongings have been contaminated by a form of digital virus. We require your cooperation to ensure it is completely eliminated. Please follow our instructions thoroughly."

Alex sat up and found himself in a clean, white laboratory, surrounded by scientists in hazmat suits. Sterile lights illuminated the room from above, reflecting off the smooth walls and metal surfaces. Several pieces of unfamiliar equipment stood nearby, their displays quietly flickering as the scientists moved around him. The air carried the faint, sterile smell of disinfectant, making it immediately clear that this was a controlled environment.

"Please surrender all personal items and strip down until naked."

Alex complied with a heavy sigh. He removed and handed over his backpack, deactivated his Deep Suit, then removed his vambrace along with the return beacon and surrendered those as well. Finally, he took off his clothes and handed them over, leaving him standing naked among the scientists.

It was a familiar experience, one he had gone through less than a month ago. His blood and tissue were collected, his body scanned from head to toe with every kind of scanner imaginable, and his belongings thoroughly searched.

"We have identified the source of the contamination as this device."

Surrounded by scientists was Nyx’s database, the one that had been filled with information extracted from the local servers. It was strange, though. Those servers had already been checked by the people of that world and deemed uncontaminated.

That simple fact led Alex to an equally simple conclusion.

The people of that world were screwed.

After all, despite their best efforts, they had been unable to properly detect and remove the virus with their scans. Perhaps, years in the future, they would eventually rebuild their society to its former level of technological advancement. Then, once they finally let their guard down, they might suffer through a second apocalypse when the dormant virus resurfaced. It was a bleak future for an already bleak world.

Alex shrugged. There was nothing he could do about it.

"Please elaborate on the type of world you were in and any possible reasons why this device might be contaminated with a deadly virus."

Alex explained the world he had found himself in. He described their technological advancements and the Artificial Pokémon, the Future Paradox Pokémon that had been turned into weapons by their technology. He told them about the apocalypse that had nearly destroyed their civilization, the survivors who had managed to endure it, and their ongoing efforts to rebuild what had been lost.

He explained how the survivors had isolated themselves from the rest of the world by covering the planet in dark clouds that blocked satellites, how they had developed increasingly desperate methods of defending themselves that eventually led to the creation of Arclight Cannons, and how they were still fighting against the remnants of the virus that had caused the catastrophe in the first place.

The scientists listened intently, occasionally interrupting him to ask for clarification or requesting more details about their technology. Alex answered as best he could, explaining what he knew while making it clear that much of the world’s technology was beyond his understanding.

By the time he finished, the scientists had a much clearer picture of the bleak world he had stumbled into.

"You were lucky, Mr. Wattson. The world you visited wasn’t nearly as technologically advanced as some of the others we’ve encountered. The first time someone returned from a more technologically advanced world, the entirety of Lumiose City had to be placed under lockdown. We had to deploy an entire army of Rotom, Metagross, and Porygon to contain the contamination and eliminate it before it could spread."

"Why would you say I was lucky?" Alex asked.

"Because you could have been held accountable for what happened. You see, the contract you signed expressly forbids you from returning from a more technologically advanced world with their technology. If you had brought back something that posed a similar threat, you would have been responsible for the consequences. Fortunately, we were able to detect and contain the contamination immediately through our scans, before it had a chance to spread."

"So I was lucky because you caught it before it became a problem?" Alex asked with a frown.

"Precisely. If we hadn’t detected it, the situation could have been considerably worse, and you would have been held responsible for all the damages. Assuming you survived, you would have been worked like a dog by the League until you died."

Again, Alex shrugged. He had read the terms of the contract and vaguely remembered something along those lines, but he hadn’t thought much of it. The virus hadn’t seemed all that impressive to him, especially since he had been able to remove it with the locals’ help. He hadn’t realized that even their own scans had failed to detect it, nor that the process had left behind so much dormant code.

"What now?" Alex asked.

"No harm done. We’ll simply remove the virus from the database and return everything to you. However, I strongly recommend that you treat the contents of this device much more carefully from now on. Don’t place too much faith in our scans. Even after we’ve thoroughly examined it, we can’t guarantee that every trace of the virus has been removed. At the very least, never connect it to a public network."

"Sure," Alex agreed easily.

He was just going to dump this onto Nyx with a warning and be done with it.

"That being said, your expedition this time is quite impressive. Over a thousand Master ranked corpses isn’t something we come across very often."

"Will this count as my debriefing?" Alex asked.

"Yes. Since we’re all here, we might as well save you the trouble. Besides, you’ve returned with some rather curious devices and quite a bit of information."

"You mean the Arclight Cannons?"

"Yes. You reported that they possess Master ranked firepower, correct? Judging by the damage on these corpses, they’re quite powerful. That presents another unfortunate matter you’ll have to deal with."

"What do you mean?" Alex asked, furrowing his brows.

𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"Master ranked technology is restricted by the League."

"I’ve... never heard of that before."

"Of course not. Even among Master ranked individuals, there are different levels of information security. The moment you returned with Master ranked technology, you became subject to those restrictions as well."

"Let me get this straight," Alex said, nursing a growing headache. "The League has had access to Master ranked technology all along? And not only that, they’ve been sealing it away and preventing the public from benefiting from it?"

"Yes. I’m not privy to all the details, but the purpose of these restrictions is to prevent criminals from gaining access to such powerful technology. If the League started openly displaying power far beyond what the public has access to, criminals would inevitably find ways to acquire the same technology. That would trigger an arms race, with every faction scrambling to obtain increasingly powerful weapons. Eventually, it could escalate to the point where the destruction of all life as we know it becomes a very real possibility."

"I’m pretty sure I’ve had access to Master ranked weapons for a long time now..." Alex pointed out.

He had the B.O.M.B., after all, and had already used it to devastating effect on Team Dominion’s island. Even though he hadn’t released any specific information about the raid, the sheer scale of the destruction should have been enough to attract the League’s attention, especially with their satellite surveillance.

"I don’t know anything about that, but if you’ve managed to avoid being sanctioned, it’s probably because you’ve never allowed that technology to leak. You have exceptionally reliable cybersecurity. Besides, owning and using such technology isn’t forbidden. That’s your right as the person who discovered it. Sharing that information, however, is forbidden. If you ever fall prey to criminals and your technology is stolen or leaked, you’ll be held responsible for your failure to protect it."

Alex thought about it and realized this was the League’s compromise. They wouldn’t take technology away from those who had already developed or discovered it, but they would do everything in their power to prevent it from spreading.

It might even explain why Master ranked artillery cannons had never been sold by Devon Corporation despite its advanced technology. They could possess and use such weapons, but they couldn’t sell them. If they ever fell victim to corporate espionage and their technology leaked, the resulting sanctions could potentially cripple the company.

It made sense, in a way. The League couldn’t simply confiscate the fruits of a powerful trainer’s labor. Instead, they allowed them to retain and use their creations under strict restrictions designed to prevent the technology from spreading and destabilizing the world.

It was another example of just how adaptive the League was as a governing institution. Rather than trying to impose absolute control over people powerful enough to resist it, the League had learned to work within their limits while maintaining enough authority to keep them in check.

Perhaps that adaptability was precisely why the League had managed to retain its power for so long, despite governing a world filled with individuals powerful enough to challenge it.

"What now?" Alex asked, having resigned himself to his fate.

"You’ll need to sign another contract with the League before you’re allowed to leave. After that, we’ll continue with your debriefing. I’m particularly interested in how much of your loot you’re willing to sell to the League."